Scott had reached down to check the temperature of a spring when he slipped and fell into it. Rescuers later found Scott’s body inside the pool, but couldn’t retrieve it because of a lighting storm in the area. When they came back the next day, no remains were found beneath the spring’s churning, acidic waters.

“In a very short order, there was a significant amount of dissolving,” Veress said.

The parks’ geysers and springs are acidic because they are fed by thermal water deep underground that picks up sulfuric acid as it rises to the surface. The sulfuric acid is produced by microorganisms that break down hydrogen sulfide in rocks and soil.

Scott’s sister was recording on her cell phone when he fell in, but the park service won’t release the video.

Veress stressed the importance for park visitors to obey all warning signs.

“Because (Yellowstone) is wild and it hasn’t been overly altered by people to make things a whole lot safer, it’s got dangers,” he said. “And a place like Yellowstone, which is set aside because of the incredible geothermal resources that are here, all the more so.”